In electrical wiring, conduit fittings are used for connecting electrical conduits or various other cables to outlets, fixture boxes, junction boxes, and the like. In many applications, it is often desirable to have a conduit fitting that includes a bend or an angle.
Various conduit fittings have been developed that can be rotated for use as both a straight conduit fitting and an angled conduit fitting. U.S. Pat. No. 954,504 to W. F. Drew describes a pipe coupling device with a threaded nut having a flange that cooperates with the flange of a fitting with a bend. However, such coupling device does not prevent loosening or rotational movement of one fitting against another fitting.
Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 1,880,098 to J. E. Mair, U.S. Pat. No. 4,856,825 to Blakely, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,114,631 to Gretz, all disclose a connector fitting for conduits with a variation of a nut member holding two conduits. However, none of these references provide for a connector which will facilitate a tight clasp of two conduits to prevent their inter-rotation during installation or at a time thereafter, as well as maintain the conduits in place should the nut member be slightly loosened.
Further, many of the prior conduit fittings are difficult to install due to their complexity. In terms of steps for installing prior conduit fittings, the installer must hold the conduit fitting in one hand at the desired angle, and with the other hand manipulate the securing mechanism for locking the conduit fitting at a desired angle. Additionally, as the prior art references mentioned above indicate, those fittings provide a nut to secure the fitting at the desired angle. However, over time, the nut loosens allowing the fitting to inter-rotate or change positions.
Other prior art fittings include a snap-on feature to snap the two sections of the fitting together at the desired angle as shown in the U.S. Pat. No. 5,064,226 to Klas. However, the snap-on feature also results in a loose connection between the fitting pieces allowing the fitting pieces to change positions relative to each other.
Further, prior art fittings mentioned above and other fittings in the industry include a variety of separate pieces which must be assembled on-site. As there are several small separate pieces in the prior art fittings, which are easy to lose and hard to handle, the fitting itself is difficult to put together and, often, certain pieces such as the nut may become lost while trying to assemble the fitting.
Some of the fittings also fail to provide a water resistance feature as a tradeoff of their feature for making various rotational angle positions possible during assembly. Moreover, these prior conduit fittings are often complex and/or difficult to manufacture.
Accordingly, it is desirable to provide a conduit fitting which can be installed at any desired angle and retained at that angle until purposefully moved. Further, it is desirable to have a fitting assembly including a means of securing the fitting so that it will not come off during shipment and loosen after installation. In addition, it is desirable to have a fitting assembly that is pre-assembled at the manufacturing site to prevent loss of important pieces, yet allow disassembly if required. Finally, it is desirable to provide a conduit fitting assembly that can be easily and readily assembled, while preventing water from entering there through.